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Inoke Afeaki
Inoke Afeaki (born 12 July 1973 in Tofoa, Tongatapu) is a Tongan former rugby union footballer, coach and administrator. He has played professionally in New Zealand, Japan, Wales, France and Tonga, and coached in France, New Zealand and Singapore. His usual playing position was at lock. Career Afeaki has played for the Wellington Lions in the National Provincial Championship, the Hurricanes in the international Super 14 competition, Secom and Ricoh in Japan before joining the Scarlets in Wales. He represented Grenoble in the French Pro D2. He captained Tonga at the 2003 Rugby World Cup. He signed for Saint Etienne in 2009. In 1986-90, he attended St Bernard's College in Wellington, in 1991 and 1992 he played for the Wellington under 19 and 21 teams respectively. He played for Petone from 1992 through to 1999, and the Wellington Lions from 1993–96 and again from 1999-01. He made his Super 12 debut for the Hurricanes in 1996, in the first season. He played in Japan from 1997 ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Tofoa
Tongatapu is the main island of Tonga and the site of its capital, Nukualofa. It is located in Tonga's southern island group, to which it gives its name, and is the country's most populous island, with 74,611 residents (2016), 70.5% of the national population, on . Based on Google Earth Pro, its maximum elevation is at least above sea level along Liku Road at 21 degrees 15 minutes and 55.7 seconds south 175 degrees 08 minutes 06.4 seconds west, but could be even higher somewhere else. Tongatapu is Tonga's centre of government and the seat of its monarchy. Tongatapu has experienced more rapid economic development than the other islands of Tonga, and has thus attracted many internal migrants from them. Geography The island is (or including neighbouring islands) and rather flat, as it is built of coral limestone. The island is covered with thick fertile soil consisting of volcanic ash from neighbouring volcanoes. At the steep coast of the south, heights reach an average of , an ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Air New Zealand Cup
The atmosphere of Earth is the layer of gases, known collectively as air, retained by Earth's gravity that surrounds the planet and forms its planetary atmosphere. The atmosphere of Earth protects life on Earth by creating pressure allowing for liquid water to exist on the Earth's surface, absorbing ultraviolet solar radiation, warming the surface through heat retention (greenhouse effect), and reducing temperature extremes between day and night (the diurnal temperature variation). By mole fraction (i.e., by number of molecules), dry air contains 78.08% nitrogen, 20.95% oxygen, 0.93% argon, 0.04% carbon dioxide, and small amounts of other gases. Air also contains a variable amount of water vapor, on average around 1% at sea level, and 0.4% over the entire atmosphere. Air composition, temperature, and atmospheric pressure vary with altitude. Within the atmosphere, air suitable for use in photosynthesis by terrestrial plants and breathing of terrestrial animals is found only in ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Petone
Petone (Māori: ''Pito-one''), a large suburb of Lower Hutt, Wellington, stands at the southern end of the Hutt Valley, on the northern shore of Wellington Harbour. The Māori name means "end of the sand beach". Europeans first settled in Petone in 1840, making it one of the oldest European settlements in the Wellington Region. It became a borough in 1888, and merged with Lower Hutt (branded as "Hutt City") in 1989. Geography Petone is flat. It is nestled between the Hutt River to the north and east, hills on the west and Wellington Harbour to the south. The land along the Petone foreshore was uplifted by a metre or more after the 1855 Wairarapa earthquake. This improved drainage around the mouth of the Hutt River. The foreshore at Petone has a shallow sandy beach, formed by sediment from the Hutt River, which is a popular family swimming spot. The Korokoro Stream comes down off the hills at the western side of Petone. As a low-lying suburb, Petone is vulnerable to tsu ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Pacific Islanders Rugby Union Team
The Pacific Islanders was a combined international rugby union team that played from 2004 to 2008. It represented Fiji, Samoa and Tonga; Niue and the Cook Islands also supplied players to the squad for their tour in 2004. The team did not play at Rugby World Cups, where each of the nations continued to represent themselves. History Australia/New Zealand 2004 The Pacific Islands Rugby Alliance (PIRA) was formed in 2003. The coach is appointed by the Islanders board and in turn supported by the national coaches of Fiji, Samoa and Tonga. Its team, the Pacific Islanders, is drawn from the best Fijian, Tongan and Samoan players, and created great interest in their inaugural 2004 tour. They lost every game, 29-14 v Australia, 41-26 v New Zealand and 38-24 v South Africa. The Islanders did beat a Queensland XV 48-29 at Ballymore and NSW Waratahs 68-21 at Australia Stadium. Celtic Nations 2006 As the individual nations were primarily concerned with qualifying for the next World Cup the I ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Try (rugby)
A try is a way of scoring points in rugby union and rugby league football. A try is scored by grounding the ball in the opposition's in-goal area (on or behind the goal line). Rugby union and league differ slightly in defining "grounding the ball" and the "in-goal" area. In rugby union a try is worth 5 points, in rugby league a try is worth 4 points. The term "try" comes from "try at goal", signifying that grounding the ball originally only gave the attacking team the opportunity to try to score with a kick at goal. A try is analogous to a touchdown in American and Canadian football, with the major difference being that a try requires the ball be simultaneously touching the ground and an attacking player, whereas a touchdown merely requires that the ball enter the end zone while in the possession of a player. In both codes of rugby, the term ''touch down'' formally refers only to grounding the ball by the defensive team in their in-goal. A Try is scored in wheelchair rugby fol ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Wales National Rugby Union Team
The Wales national rugby union team ( cy, Tîm rygbi'r undeb cenedlaethol Cymru) represents Wales in men's international rugby union. Its governing body, the Welsh Rugby Union (WRU), was established in 1881, the same year that Wales played their first international against England. The team plays its home matches at the Millennium Stadium in Cardiff (currently known for sponsorship reasons as the Principality Stadium), which replaced Cardiff Arms Park as the national stadium of Wales in 1999. Wales has competed annually in the Six Nations Championship (previously the Home Nations Championship and Five Nations Championship) since it was established in 1883. They have won the tournament (and its predecessors) outright 28 times, most recently in 2021. Since 2005, Wales has been the most successful team in the Six Nations, winning six Six Nations titles. They include four Grand Slams, again more than any other side. Wales has also participated in every Rugby World Cup since the com ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Murrayfield Stadium
Murrayfield Stadium (known as BT Murrayfield Stadium for sponsorship reasons, or popularly as Murrayfield) is a Rugby stadium located in the Murrayfield area of Edinburgh, Scotland. It has a seating capacity of 67,144 making it the largest stadium in Scotland and the fifth largest in the United Kingdom. The stadium is the home of the Scottish Rugby Union (SRU) and is mainly used as a venue for rugby union. The stadium hosts most of Scotland's home test matches and the ''Scottish Hydro Electric Cup'' final, as well as URC and European Rugby Champions Cup matches. Although primarily a rugby union stadium, Murrayfield has in the past hosted American football, rugby league and association football matches, as well as numerous music concerts. History Purchase of land The SRU identified 19 acres of land at Murrayfield, purchasing this from Edinburgh Polo Club at Murrayfield, having raised money through debentures. A stand and three embankments were constructed, which took two ye ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Côte D'Ivoire National Rugby Union Team
The Ivory Coast national rugby union team, nicknamed ''Les Éléphants'', participates in the annual Africa Cup and are considered a third tier rugby team. Formed in 1990, the team's most significant achievement to date was their success in qualifying for the Rugby World Cup for their first and so far only time in 1995. They have not qualified since, though they did reach the semi-finals of the African qualifying competition for the 2011 Rugby World Cup, achieving a home draw against eventual qualifiers Namibia before being defeated in their away match. Rugby union in Côte d'Ivoire is popular among school children, but the rugby union playing population in Côte d'Ivoire is still relatively small with only 14 clubs and 470 registered senior players. The national side is ranked 43rd in the world (as of 29 July 2019). History The Fédération Ivoirienne de Rugby, the national rugby union federation, was formed in March 1990, the same month that it joined the International R ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Scotland National Rugby Union Team
The Scotland national rugby union team represents Scotland in men's international rugby union and is administered by the Scottish Rugby Union. The team takes part in the annual Six Nations Championship and participates in the Rugby World Cup, which takes place every four years. As of 4 December 2022, Scotland are 7th in the World Rugby Rankings. The history of the team extends back to 1871 when the Scottish rugby team played their first official test match, winning 1–0 against England at Raeburn Place. Scotland competed in the Five Nations from the inaugural tournament in 1883, winning it 14 times outright—including the last Five Nations in 1999—and sharing it another 8. In 2000 the competition accepted a sixth competitor, Italy, thus forming the Six Nations. Since this change, Scotland have yet to win the competition. The Rugby World Cup was introduced in 1987 and Scotland have competed in all nine competitions, the most recent being in 2019, where they failed to r ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
1995 Rugby World Cup
The 1995 Rugby World Cup was the third Rugby World Cup. It was hosted and won by South Africa, and was the first Rugby World Cup in which every match was held in one country. The World Cup was the first major sporting event to take place in South Africa following the end of apartheid. It was also the first World Cup in which South Africa was allowed to compete; the International Rugby Football Board (IRFB, now World Rugby) had only readmitted South Africa to international rugby in 1992, following negotiations to end apartheid. The World Cup was also the last major event of rugby union's amateur era; two months after the tournament, the IRFB opened the sport to professionalism. In the final, held at Ellis Park in Johannesburg on 24 June, South Africa defeated New Zealand 15–12, with Joel Stransky scoring a drop goal in extra time to win the match. Following South Africa's victory, Nelson Mandela, the President of South Africa, wearing a Springboks rugby shirt and cap, prese ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Pretoria
Pretoria () is South Africa's administrative capital, serving as the seat of the Executive (government), executive branch of government, and as the host to all foreign embassies to South Africa. Pretoria straddles the Apies River and extends eastward into the foothills of the Magaliesberg mountains. It has a reputation as an academic city and center of research, being home to the Tshwane University of Technology (TUT), the University of Pretoria (UP), the University of South Africa (UNISA), the Council for Scientific and Industrial Research (CSIR), and the Human Sciences Research Council. It also hosts the National Research Foundation (South Africa), National Research Foundation and the South African Bureau of Standards. Pretoria was one of the host cities of the 2010 FIFA World Cup. Pretoria is the central part of the City of Tshwane Metropolitan Municipality which was formed by the amalgamation of several former local authorities, including Bronkhorstspruit, Centurion, Gaute ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
France National Rugby Union Team
The France national rugby union team () represents France in men's international rugby union and it is administered by the French Rugby Federation. They traditionally play in blue shirts emblazoned with the national emblem of a golden rooster on a red shield, with white shorts and red socks; thus they are commonly referred to as or . The team's home matches are mostly played at the Stade de France in the Paris suburb of Saint-Denis. Rugby was introduced to France in 1872 by the British, and on New Years Day 1906, the national side played its first test match – against New Zealand in Paris. France played sporadically against the Home Nations until they joined them to form the Five Nations Championship (now the Six Nations) in 1910. France also competed in the rugby competitions at early Summer Olympics, winning the gold medal in 1900 and two silver medals in the 1920s. The national team came of age during the 1950s and 1960s, winning their first Five Nations title outright ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
